As inflation continues to rise, you may be considering how you can mitigate the impact of inflation on your money. With investment bank Citigroup forecasting UK inflation of 18.6 per cent in January 2023, you could be tempted to invest all your cash to try to minimise the impact of inflation. But you need to strike a balance, holding some money in savings accounts and cash individual savings accounts (Isas) for emergencies, and some in longer-term investments.
"Holding too much cash at a time of high inflation means that the spending power of your money will be consumed by rising prices," says Sarah Coles, senior personal finance analyst at investment platform Hargreaves Lansdown. "There’s a real risk that people who think they're taking the safest possible approach are actually taking the one option that's guaranteed to see the value of their assets drop. However, that doesn't mean we should turn our back on cash, because there are some savings we need to hold – regardless of inflation and interest rates."
Holding some cash as an emergency fund is always necessary even if this asset is not the most effective way to beat inflation. And picking a suitable savings account or cash Isa with the best interest rate available can to help offset some of the damage inflation may have on that cash.